An Institutional Review Board (IRB) is an administrative group that’s formally tasked with reviewing and monitoring research involving human subjects in order to protect the rights and welfare of the subjects. Its part of the Human Research Protection Program (HRPP).

General guidance on surveys used for evaluation:

• Surveys used for county-level programming are generally exempt from needing IRB approval.
• Surveys developed by specialists should seek IRB approval.
• If you anticipate using results as part of a refereed journal submission, you should include demographic questions and obtain IRB approval.

General guidance on health measures used for evaluation:

• Any data collection involving measures of participant health such as weight, blood pressure, and blood glucose should seek IRB approval.

Resources to answer IRB questions:

• Texas A&M’s Human Research Protection Program
• Your IRB Contact within HRPP

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